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Simon's avatar

Fine article, thank you. I’m less confident than you are, however, that more and more Americans are seeing through the empire. From where I sit in northern Virginia, more and more ordinary Americans are pretty cool with the notion of territorial expansion - IF it makes gas cheaper and the USA “greater”. In short, you identify three cretins: you’re around 250 million out.

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Patrick Lawrence's avatar

Simon.

Thanks for this. Of course you are right. I know the story well--the American betrayal of Aguinaldo and his compatriots after the defeat of the Spanish, the vicious exterminaion of "the gooks"--this the 1st use of this term, not in Vietnam--that came after. It is a dreadfully appropriate curtain-raise on all the Manifest Duplicity--my term for it--that followed.

I collpased too much history into too few words to stay with my theme.

Thanks the bit of intellectual discipline.

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Carolyn L Zaremba's avatar

Americans are famous for many things. Chief among those things is their political ignorance. Second is their trust that mainstream media is telling them the truth. Third, they are the most propagandized people on earth. It is a disease with a long history. For so long the United States was isolated from the rest of the world, even through WWII, never invaded, never bombed to smithereens, cushioned by two oceans. Always told about how "exceptional" they and their country were. It was all bullshit, of course.

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Jos Backus's avatar

Another is their lack of caring about what their government does in their name, no matter how horrible the deeds.

And politicians lying (often by omission) and acting in almost embarrassingly corrupt ways has been completely normalized in US society. That includes many continuing to blindly respect these people.

No wonder the US is in serious trouble.

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Laurie McL's avatar

Ouch indeed. I would like to believe you are wrong...

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Roger Waters's avatar

Thank you for this. I may use the Gore Vidal president Truman anecdote, next week, it is exquisitely appropriate.

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Robert Billyard's avatar

Many years ago It was suggested the best we might expect is a benevolent despot. As it is now I would settle for one that is sane.

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Jos Backus's avatar

Even that bar appears to be too high.

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The Passionate Progressive's avatar

The ongoing Gazan ethnic cleansing goes beyond the ‘American foreign policy consensus’ or a‘Truman accepting the suitcase’ moment….Settler colonialism/ethnic cleansing are in the American DNA; just ask the Native Americans.

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Feral Finster's avatar

The reason that there is less objection to Trump 2.0 is because the United States has dropped any pretense to being anything other than an empire and therefore it is no longer necessary to keep up the pious lies.

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THE END OF THE WORLD SHOW's avatar

They missed that Truman scene in "Exodus" which is a pity. Maybe the remake.

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Atlas Did's avatar

“This is what comes from empire building.”-Breaker Morant

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Vicki Witte's avatar

If the corrupt Seattle Police Department officers, corrupt King County Sheriff’s Department, corrupt Judges of the King County Courthouse, corrupt FBI local Seattle Division should murder VICTIMS, Vicki Witte and Rebecca Booth they will be murdering Government witnesses. These factions are murdering 2 United States 🇺🇸 Government witnesses who are currently under the protection of the U.S. Marshals Service, Witness Protection Program. Signed by: Vicki Witte 6:36am Wednesday, February 19, 2025.

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Diamond Boy's avatar

Cancelling my subscription

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